China Hints Skills Training For Liberian Police

Several officers of the Liberia National Police will receive technical and vocational education training (TVET) in Liberia through the intervention of trade professors from the People’s Republic of China, Ambassador Fu Jinjun has disclosed.

The Chinese government has brought into the country professors from the prestigious Shandong Foreign Trade and Vocational College to train a hundred graduates of the Monrovia Vocational Training Center (MVTC) in Electricity, Auto Repairs, and Masonry.

The 45-day Overseas Vocational Training Program for Liberian Youth in 2018, launched on November 5, will come to an end in December when the participating students will earn ‘advanced’ certificates in said disciplines.

The records of the 100 beneficiaries were selected for the TVET training following a screening process of entries submitted by hundreds of interested students out of the graduates from MVTC.

Interestingly, next on the Chinese government’s plate for such training is the Liberia National Police (LNP), Amb. Fu said in an exclusive interview with the Liberia News Agency (LINA) at the MVTC on Monday.

The life skills, he noted, will add value to the professional career of the police officers so that they give back to society in many ways besides only providing security for communities.

The Chinese diplomat described the current training opportunity for the youth at MVTC as “a great day because China and Liberia are longstanding friends and partners.”

According to him, the government and people of China appreciate that President George Weah prioritizes human capital development as indicated in Pillar One of the Pro-Poor Agenda for Prosperity and Development (PAPD) – truly giving power to the people.

Under Pillar One of the PAPD, the Liberian government insists it will focus on review and revision of the education system, improve health and sanitation, promote and strengthen gender equality, and provide for youth re-orientation and empowerment through training of all kinds, the creation of jobs, and the expansion of sports.

“Youth empowerment through training is an important thing that will allow these brothers and sisters to develop themselves to fully use their resources, and in the future we will continue to do this,” said Chinese envoy Fu.

“After this training we will have another one for the police, and by next year we will provide more scholarships and training opportunities for Liberian youth, particularly the ladies,” the diplomat added.

Meanwhile, Youth and Sports Minister D. Zeogar Wilson told students in the jammed-packed MVTC theatre that youth development does not only include providing jobs for the young people, but building their capacity and skills to make them marketable “and that is what this training entails.”

Wilson said had the ministry not prevailed on the Chinese government to send professors here, there would have been a less number of students going to China on scholarships for such a training program, “but the fact that they are here today we will be able to train more of our youth; so the Pro-poor Agenda is working in plain sight.”

He hailed the Chinese government for its longstanding history of helping to build the capacity of the youth of Liberia through the provision of scholarships and skills training opportunities.

In August, scores of Liberian students were awarded scholarships to study in China following their brilliant performances in the West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examinations, a sub-regional test for high school students.

Source: LINA

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Joel Cholo Brooks is a Liberian journalist who previously worked for several international news outlets including the BBC African Service. He is the CEO of the Global News Network which publishes two local weeklies, The Star and The GNN-Liberia Newspapers. He is a member of the Press Union Of Liberia (PUL) since 1986, and several other international organizations of journalists, and is currently contributing to the South Africa Broadcasting Corporation as Liberia Correspondent.